San Dieguito Union chose to name the theater after Liggett in 2006. Liggett directed 175 plays in a 33-year career, including two decades at San Dieguito. Some of his students even made it to Broadway and Los Angeles productions. He turned down offers to teach at universities for higher pay because he so much enjoyed working with high school students, according to a San Diego Union report on his retirement in 1985.

“There’s something about the kids, to see them experience success for the first time in their life,” Liggett said in the article. “That’s pretty heavy for a 14- or 15-year-old.”

Construction, done by Barnhart Balfour Beatty, began the day after school ended in June.